


Be My Forever

by agentsimmons



Series: The Many Adventures of Bear Banner-Stark [3]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Adorable Hulk, Domestic Bliss, Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Marriage Proposal, Romantic Fluff, Science Boyfriends, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-04
Updated: 2015-10-04
Packaged: 2018-04-24 09:37:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,978
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4914460
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/agentsimmons/pseuds/agentsimmons
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>so darling just swear you'll stay right by my side</i>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	Be My Forever

"You're so good, Bruce. So good at this." Tony's mewls of pleasure filled the bedroom of his Malibu home. "God, I love your hands. Have I said that lately? They're perfect."

Bruce chuckled slightly. "You may have mentioned it a few dozen times in the last five minutes."

Tony was sprawled out, face down, on their bed as Bruce gave him a hot oil massage with as much skill as his dexterous fingers possessed, which if Tony's encouragements were to be believed was quite a good deal of skill.

"That's the last time I let Pepper talk me into a three hour meeting." Tony groaned when Bruce found a particularly tight knot. Bruce worked at it with the same determined focus he used in the lab. The groan turned into a moan as the knot began to uncoil. "I swear, baby, your hands are magic. I'm gonna have to return the favor."

Bruce smiled. "Rain check. I'd be happier if you took a nap while I make some dinner." The engineer had been awake far too often since they'd come to Malibu a few weeks before. Bruce was starting to wonder what had him preoccupied and unable to sleep. "You need the rest."

Tony moaned again as Bruce made a final deep pass of motion with his hands along his back. "You're too good to me. What would I do without you?"

Bruce's breath hitched slightly, but he replied, "Hire a masseuse and a chef?"

Tony suddenly craned his neck just enough to glance up at Bruce. He then awkwardly moved his arm and caught one of the hands Bruce had on his shoulder with his own and the physicist immediately stilled his ministrations. "But neither of those people would be you." He said it in that genuine tone of his that tended to make Bruce, as silly as it might sound for a grown man housing a green monster, a little weak-kneed. "So I'm just gonna have to keep you around to spoil me instead. That okay?"

Bruce smiled again, a little goofier this time, and he leaned down until he was closer to Tony's face. "Yeah," he said low and with a nod. "That's okay."

* * *

Tony smiled up at the Hulk as he sat staring at the ocean from Tony's Malibu property. Bear was curled up on Hulk's lap, Tony holding the leash beside him just in case.

"You know, I used to think this felt a little like being on top of the world when I was younger," Tony said conversationally. "Living here on a cliff side overlooking the ocean. That was of course before I learned how to fly and built a tower into the sky to chase that feeling even further." Hulk didn't respond in any sort of way, but Tony kept talking. "But then I guess I finally realized how lonely that is. A kingdom in the clouds? There's nobody up there with you except the birds. And I guess people in planes or on the Helicarrier," he snorted, then went quiet for a moment before letting out a small sigh. "I don't know. Maybe that's why I was so eager to convert the tower. I wanted to bring as many people as I could up into the clouds with me."

"Take Banner," Hulk finally grunted out.

Tony smiled softly and nodded. "Yeah, big guy. From the moment I met him I knew if there was one person I wanted up there in the clouds with me it was Bruce. And you too, of course," Tony gave him a smile. "Funny thing is, I think somehow he managed to bring me back down to Earth when I wasn't paying attention and yet it still feels like I'm on top of the world. It's like I can finally have both."

"Banner have both now," Hulk said after a moment. He then looked considering, like he was searching for the words which Tony knew he was. "Banner lonely before clouds. Banner scared and hurt. Always run. Hulk run too."

"I know, Hulk. I know," Tony replied, making his voice as gentle as he could although it wasn't so hard anymore. "You both had very good reasons to run and be scared. A lot of people hurt you."

"Hurt each other," Hulk added with a gravelly bellow which Tony had learned was his version of a sigh.

"Yeah. Yeah, you both hurt each other. But you didn't know any better. People were hurting you both and you blamed it on each other." Tony was silent for a moment. "But now you understand each other more. I'm glad you let me help you."

"Tony make better. Tony make Banner not puny."

Tony couldn't help but smile widely for a moment. "You know, Hulk it goes both ways. Bruce made me better. I was puny in different ways and he helped me with that. You both helped me."

Suddenly Hulk's face lit up in a way that looked horribly mocking, and it kind of was, but Tony had come to realize it was the only way he knew how to tease. "Tony not know he love Banner. Stupid Banner not know." He gave Tony a primitive grin.

Tony barked out a soft laugh. "Yeah, we were pretty stupid weren't we? I'm glad we figured it out though. I don't think I could imagine life without him now. What do you think, Big Green? Do you think it would be horrible if Bruce and I weren't together anymore?"

Hulk furrowed his brow. "Banner not run now."

"Oh, I know, I know," Tony appeased quickly before looking out on the ocean with an intense gaze. He took a deep breath and then took advantage of the fact that Bruce didn't usually remember these times when Hulk was out. "I just mean, I kind of want to spend the rest of my life with him. I don't want him to ever leave. I don't want to ever have to leave him. That kind of thing. I just want to stay on top of the world with him and you and Bear and... Well, I just want to face the rest of everything with him whatever that might be." Tony paused and then looked at Hulk tentatively. "Am I making sense?"

Hulk grunted in affirmation. "Hulk understand. Like what Banner wanted with Pretty Betty."

Tony's face fell for a moment, but he tried to give him a weak smile just the same. "Yeah, that." He sighed. "I really want that." Then he asked, "Good or bad?"

Hulk gave an affirming grunt. "Good." That was at least enough to make Tony's smile brighten with hope.

* * *

Pepper looked at the long list in her hand, eyes narrowed and nose crinkled as she did. Finally, it softened and she looked at the man fidgeting in the seat across from her. She offered him a small smile as she raised an eyebrow.

"Is this…" She looked down again at the list and her smile widened. "It is, isn't it?"

"Bad idea?" The question was tentative.

"No. Definitely not. As long as _you_ don't think it is."

He blinked several times, as if trying to process the statement. "Of course I don't. I mean, well, I'm worried sure, but-"

"Tony Stark worried?" She gave a slightly incredulous laugh.

He cocked his head in mock offense. "That it could blow up in my face? Surprisingly, yeah."

"What happened to ready, fire, aim?"

"This is too important," he answered without a moment's hesitation, looking at her intently.

Pepper smiled again. "That right there tells me this is a good idea. So, do you want me to arrange it or not?"

Tony sighed, but it was followed by a hopeful smile. "Yeah. I do."

* * *

"Dessert, Dr. Banner?" Bruce looked up from the movie to see Tony had returned with a large tub of double fudge brownie ice cream and was proffering a large spoon to him. The engineer's face was wide and his eyes seemed to say, 'you know you want to.'

Bruce grinned in amusement. He carefully reached out and grabbed the spoon, taking care not to stir the sleeping puppy curled up against his thigh. Tony took care not to just flop back on to the couch on Bruce's other side. They took turns spooning out the ice cream as they continued watching the old western on the television.

"This is nice," Bruce said after a few moments.

"What is?" Tony asked, but Bruce thought he sounded far away.

"You haven't even tried to turn this into something sexual," Bruce pointed out, but then half-wondered what that might mean. He squashed the thought and continued. "I mean, not that I would mind if you had, but every now and then this is nice. You know? The, uh, just the companionship. Just eating and watching a movie without anything else."

Tony gave him a crooked, half smile and then dug back into the ice cream. Bruce furrowed his brow. He suddenly got the sense that something was wrong. "Hey, you okay?" He decided to follow his hunch and ask.

Tony looked down into the tub and Bruce could tell that there was _something_ going on and that Tony was contemplating being forthcoming. He gave Tony the time he needed to say what was on his mind without being pressured into it. 

"Does it bother you?"

"Does what bother me?" Bruce looked at him questioningly.

"I don't know. Having to be an Avenger. Me not being able to do the normal boyfriend thing. The usual. I don't know. Forget it." Tony's head dropped and he promptly began staring a hole into the tub again.

Bruce took another bite and considered how to respond to that. It wasn't entirely wrong that there were times his insecurities set in or that he had his share of worries and other issues, but it didn't have to do with what Tony seemed to be asking about. "Those aren't the things that bother me," he admitted vaguely.

Tony suddenly sat up straight, shifting to look at him curiously. "Then what?"

Bruce knew he must look sheepish at the first thing that came to his mind. "I—Well, sometimes I do get a little upset with the tabloids that insist that you're cheating on me with everybody else."

Tony groaned loudly. "When will they get it through their heads that me and Steve are not a thing. Me and Natasha are not a thing. There are no things. And why the hell are they so convinced that you and I can't really be a serious item? I need to get our lawyers on that because—"

"It's fine," Bruce cut him off before he could start getting too riled up. "Just because it upsets me sometimes doesn't mean I believe them. I know you're not cheating on me with Steve or Natasha or anyone else." He knew that for certain even if he wasn't always one hundred percent certain that Tony wouldn't eventually get bored and call it off before moving on to someone else, someone better.

"Good. Because if you really thought I was, those stupid rag companies wouldn't know what hit them."

"And I'm the one with breathtaking anger management issues?" Bruce asked, feeling his eyes crinkle with laughter in spite of the weight of the conversation.

Tony relaxed beside him. "I never claimed I didn't have them too," he pointed out. "We're a match made in anger management heaven."

Bruce snorted. "I'm not sure that's actually a good thing." He then swallowed, debating if he should continue. It was probably best to have the next one out in the open since he'd been careful to never broach it. "But, uh, sometimes I also get a little bothered if I let myself think too hard about all of the people…"

"That I've been with?" Tony quickly filled in the blanks. "Because you know those people didn't mean anything. Except Pepper of course." He looked at him curiously as if not sure Bruce did know that.

"I know," Bruce reassured him. "But you had _a lot_ of partners, Tony. I didn't exactly get around so it's hard to wrap my mind around sometimes. And, yeah, sometimes I do the whole insecurity thing. I don't if it's so much jealousy as it is wondering if… I don't know. If you ever think…" And this was why he never mentioned it, he reminded himself. He could rationalize it; he knew he was letting himself over think it. But it never stopped him from feeling caught in limbo between logic and emotion. "I guess I still just don't understand why you're with me sometimes."

"You know, I wish you wouldn't say you don't understand, Bruce," the engineer mumbled, looking hard at his spoon. "It makes me feel like you think I've got one foot out the door."

"Look, Tony, I'm sorry for bringing it up. It's just one of those weird jealousy things. It's like I'm jealous, but I'm not jealous. I don't know." Bruce waved his own spoon a little. "I don't want you to feel bad about that."

"You know, I'm sorry too. I'm sorry that you weren't there all along." Bruce hadn't expected that response and his eyebrows shot up. "When I think about all the years we didn't get to have or all of those people who _weren't_ _you_ …" Tony turned and looked at him seriously and Bruce felt a little faint no matter how ridiculous that sounded. Tony just had that way, like a force that could cause anyone to swoon. "Ignorance is bliss maybe because now it just kind of sucks knowing I can't make up for lost time." He shrugged, but Bruce could see it was far from an indifferent shrug. "All I can do is hope you believe me when I say that you inspire things in me, in bed and out," he clarified quickly, "that none of those others did. I never had a heart to give any of those people something real in the first place. You know, Pepper was the first person to tell me my heart even existed. But you're the only person who's ever convinced me it does."

Tony ducked his head at that and looked away as if he was embarrassed by the confession. Then he added before Bruce could respond. "Those tabloids are crazy if they think I'm the one who could do better. Or maybe they just realize with a variable like me the equation can never solve."

"Don't say that," Bruce said sharply. He hated the ever looming reminder that in the end they were an equation that wouldn't solve. He wanted the math to work. He wanted to hack the matrix and _make_ it work if need be. "Tony, I'm not disgusted with you or anything if that's what you think. And I don't need the tabloids to tell me that you could do better, okay? Because, yeah, I feel that sometimes. I admit it. Maybe not one foot out the door, but do I sometimes feel like it's inevitable? Yes."

Suddenly Tony looked at him like he had something that he just had to say, like maybe this was the whole point that had been on his mind from the start, and he blurted, "Do you wish I were Betty?"

"What?" Bruce gaped at him. He then very carefully took the tub of ice cream and two spoons and set them aside so he could turn slightly to look at Tony without a distraction. "What is this about?"

"It's about you and whether you're happy," Tony said in a cautious tone. "You wanted to have everything with Betty."

Bruce let out a deep sigh. "Yes. I did."

"Instead you got me," Tony said with a derisive snort clearly aimed at himself. It made Bruce wonder where all of this was coming from. It seemed so out of form for the cocksure billionaire.

"No, what I got was a Hulk. And a bastard general with a fixation. And a group of friends who believe in me more than anyone ever believed in me with the exception of my mother, my aunts and my cousin. _Then_ I got you."

Tony fixed him with an incredulous stare. "Yeah, but that's nothing you wanted. We both know you wanted to come home after a long day working side by side with your beautiful wife to your house in the suburbs with the picket fence and the however many kids you wanted. You probably wanted a dog too, right?"

"I've got that," Bruce pointed out, shrugging his head to gesture to the sleeping puppy.

"Oh, right, because that makes up for the insatiable fuck up that I can be sometimes. Or most of the time." Tony had a scowl on his face.

"Hey now, that's my boyfriend you're insulting so stop that," Bruce chided, but it wasn't simply teasing. Then he sighed and shook his head. "Okay, so I got a handsome boyfriend I can work side by side with instead. And instead of a house in the suburbs, it's a mansion in Malibu and soon to be another one in New York and a penthouse and a private island. And if you want to put it into perspective, you tried the whole foray into stability thing with Pepper first. And Pepper is a beautiful and very capable woman who nobody even raises an eyebrow at you being with like they do me. Do you really expect me to believe that the whole time you were secretly thinking, 'well this is nice, but what I'd really like is a middle-aged physicist'?" Bruce gave him a skeptical tilt of his head.

"Alright, no," Tony conceded. "But what Pepper and I had isn't the same. We barely made it past the honeymoon stage before realizing being friends made more sense."

"Fair enough," Bruce conceded as well.

There was a moment of silence as Bruce considered his other point. "And alright so I can't have kids," he finally said with a small sigh. Tony looked at him as if Bruce had hit a harsh note, the one that made everything else inconsequential. "Yeah, that bothers me sometimes when I think about it," he admitted because Tony knew that about him already. " _But_ none of those things that makes our relationship different changes how much I care about you. I did think Betty was the one." He nodded. "I won't lie to you. I thought she was my forever. And she's wonderful, but just because I wanted that with her doesn't mean that what I got instead isn't better than what I wanted for myself."

"Really?" Tony still looked dubious. "And are you sure you just haven't convinced yourself of that because you had no choice? That it's just a good enough trade off because you couldn't just run back to Betty when the dust settled?"

" _Tony_." Bruce pinched the bridge of his nose, wishing he could get through to the engineer. "What Betty and I had wasn't perfect okay? I don't know why you think that all of a sudden because it really wasn't." He sighed. "Maybe what you and I have isn't perfect either. I told you, I'm scared you'll figure out you can do better, I guess the same way you seem to think I deserve Betty and will never care about you the same way. We're... We're pretty crossed, I'll admit that. On paper it doesn't make sense maybe." He paused and made sure Tony was still with him. "But I _love_ you. It was _you_ who swept me off to Candyland. It was _you_ who wouldn't give up on me when others had. _You_ are who I stayed for. God, Tony, you should know how big that is. I stopped running. I let you talk me into getting to know the Other Guy. I did those things because _I love you_. Do you understand that?"

Tony's mouth hung open for a moment before he seemed to find his voice. "Even when I'm making messes or doing the rich prick thing or when I have a one track mind when you'd rather just lounge on the couch and enjoy a movie, and I just realized I'm ruining that for you too..." He rambled only to deflate at the end.

Bruce couldn't help but laugh a little, although he thought it was a little sad sounding. "Tony, I love you _because_ of all of that stuff." He fixed Tony with a serious look. "I mean that. It's what makes you who you are. That's the stuff that I didn't know I could fall in love with until I did. If I didn't fall for that then why would I be with you? Why would I still be taking my chances getting hurt, huh? I mean, as spoiled as I am now I don't give a damn about the money so it's not that. Sure, the sex is phenomenal, but that's still not the sum of who you are. Just like you helped me see that anger and being afraid isn't all there is to me. Just like you're with me still in spite of when I'm doing the tiptoe thing or when I'm having an off day or when I'm being dull as a post or, as awful as it sounds, practical." He gave Tony a small, bemused smile at that.

Tony opened his mouth as if to counter Bruce's assessment of himself stubbornly, but then shut it again as if thinking better of it. Instead they sat in silence for several long minutes, Bruce feeling the whole time how badly he wanted to make this right. They were two very broken people and it had been a long time since that brokenness had hung this heavy between them either because ignorance _was_ bliss or because they were just so surprisingly happy together that it was easier to ignore. But it was still there and he wasn't sure how to handle it now that they'd been confronted by it again. He hoped that it rearing again wasn't a sign of worst things to come.

Finally Tony spoke again. "So you do think we work then? That this is right? No matter how crazy it seems, how crossed, we work?"

Bruce looked at him, seeing the desperate longing in Tony's eyes. It was the same longing that made Bruce secretly thankful that he had been wrong about Betty. Even if Tony wasn't his forever, at least he was his now and that meant more than anything he'd ever known before. He didn't want to go back no matter what Tony believed to the contrary. It was the same longing that made him want to make the math work.

"Yeah," he whispered, maybe a little defiantly against his own fears, "we work."

* * *

Tony was playing tug of war with Bear as he sat on a blanket in the park. The park played old movies on weekend evenings when the weather was warm and clear enough. It was one of Bruce's favorite things to do when they were in Malibu. Rhodey had decided to join them and was sitting beside the blanket in a lawn chair.

"Man, I never thought you'd be a dog person," Rhodey said with a small laugh as they waited for Bruce to return with some snacks – he'd insisted he could manage it without any help.

Tony smiled and hitched his free shoulder. "I guess I didn't know I could be. I asked dad once. He said no. I was smart enough not to ask again. Poor Jarvis would have had to take care of it while I was off at boarding school anyhow."

"We had cats when I was a kid," Rhodey said casually, years of practiced indifference to Tony's childhood making it so that he didn't probe any further.

"Oh yeah? Maybe I'll get a cat for Avengers Mansion. He can be the mascot. Catvenger. You hear that, Bear? You think you can handle having a cat around?" He pulled at the small rope toy as he asked.

Rhodey laughed again, shaking his head. "So how's that coming by the way?"

"Should be finished in September. The interior nightmare starts in a few weeks."

"I don't envy you that mess," Rhodey replied.

"Yeah, thankfully I'm letting everyone have at it with their spaces and then I'll probably just keep the guest spaces pretty uniform for the time being. If we end up with more Avengers in the future, which of course is the end goal, that need to move in, well, I guess we'll have to see when the time comes."

"What about me? Ever gonna invite me to be an Avenger?" Rhodey heckled.

"Nope, sorry, I don’t do military contracts anymore," Tony responded with a teasing grin.

"Right, right. Slipped my mind." Rhodey rolled his eyes. "So…uh… The party still on next weekend?"

"Yes," Tony answered simply.

"That's not what I meant." Rhodey gave him a pointed look.

"I know." Tony let go of the toy and turned to look at his friend. "That's not what I was answering."

Rhodey smiled. "Good. Not about to let you chicken out, Tone. We both know you'd regret that."

"Uh-oh," Bruce intoned as he returned. "Hope I didn't overhear anything I wasn't supposed to if there's something Tony might regret that I don't already know about." He wore an impish smile as he handed off some of the snacks to Rhodey and then settled down on the blanket next to Tony.

Bear immediately attempted to pounce onto him and Tony only managed to intercept the rest of the snacks from Bruce just in time. "Looks like somebody's excited his other dad is back," Tony said with a laugh.

"I'm excited to see you too," Bruce said as he scrubbed Bear's ears back and forth.

"You two are adorable," Rhodey teased.

"Yeah, we are," Tony said smugly between a bite of peanuts.

"Not you," Rhodey nudged at him with his foot. "I meant Bruce and Bear."

"Alright, I'll let you have that one," Tony said with a broad smile and easy shrug as he leaned over and playfully sat his chin on Bruce's shoulder. "But only because I agree with you."

* * *

"Does something seem off about this party?" Clint asked as he joined Bruce and Natasha beside the bar.

Bruce raised an eyebrow at the question. "Uh…" He then looked around. "Do you think we're going to be attacked? Should I leave?"

"I wouldn't unless you want to ruin Tony's evening," Natasha warned, a small smile playing at the edge of her lips.

"He knows I wouldn't leave unless it's important," Bruce countered, slightly offended. "This party is a big deal for him. He's been working on it for the past month so I wouldn't just leave."

"Ah, so that's it," Clint said suddenly, glancing at Natasha who had what seemed like a knowing look in her eyes.

Bruce glanced back and forth between them. "What do you mean? What's it?"

Clint looked at Natasha and she simply shrugged before turning back toward the bar to set her drink down. "Do you think it's weird that we're having a party to celebrate our third year as a team?" Clint asked.

Bruce furrowed his brow as he looked at the archer, dressed in a tux which was the only weird thing he'd witnessed so far that night. "No, not particularly. Nobody would have expected us to be a team for three years. And Tony," he smiled softly, "well, he wasn't patient enough to wait for five years to celebrate like this I guess."

"You guess? So you at least acknowledge that usually we'd just celebrate as a team out on the town like last year and the year before, right?"

Bruce shrugged. "Sure."

"So it's not at all weird to jump from that to," Clint gestured around, "this? I mean, he's making a pretty big spectacle about something that was kind of hell for a lot of people throughout Manhattan. A huge, catered affair at – oh wait, where are we again? Ah, yes, a place _you_ love."

"It's just a museum, Clint," Bruce replied with a laugh. "And they're well known for hosting these kinds of things. It allows it to be open to the public rather than just a bunch of superheroes partying over, like you said, something that was a crisis."

Clint opened his mouth, but hesitated. "Okay, fair points. But it just seems like a lot of glitz and glam. Not to mention nearly everything catered in is either organic or from your favorite places. I'm thinking the musical selections are your favorites too."

"Ah-" Bruce started to open his mouth to squeak out a protest, but then snapped it shut. He listened more closely and sure enough, Clint was right. The band was currently playing a classical rendition of one of his favorite songs. Suddenly a smile spread across his face that he couldn't control. "That's sweet of him."

"Yeah. Really sweet. Team party and everything is dedicated to his boyfriend."

Bruce's face fell at that. "I see your point. I'll talk to him. Maybe we can do something afterward to make up for it. You guys deserve just as much inclusion."

"Someone is being extra dense tonight," he heard Clint mutter as he turned to leave. He furrowed his brow, but continued on to find Tony.

Bruce looked around the level of the museum they were on, eyes trying to find his highly sought after celebrity boyfriend. The only warning he got was a familiar "just me" before being grabbed by his wrist and spun around into said boyfriend's arms. He was immediately pulled by Tony over to an area where couples were dancing.

"Just you, huh?" Bruce asked with a laugh as he gave in to the dance. There was a time, even when they'd first started dating, that he would have pushed him away gently, but he'd gotten too fond of the sensation of dancing with Tony since then. He wondered how much of it was a selfish kind of pleasure knowing that at least some onlookers begrudged him the privilege.

"Well, I came to this thing with someone else, but then I saw you and there was like a heavenly choir and I thought to myself, 'I've never seen anyone more perfect in my life. He absolutely has to be the one.' So the other guy's just gonna have to get over me. Tell me you're single."

Bruce rolled his eyes slightly at Tony's silly banter. "Hmm. Well, I came to this thing with five other people actually."

"Scandalous," Tony purred.

Bruce ducked his head, smiling in amusement before cocking his head slightly to look up at Tony as innocently as he could manage. "But only one of them's really got me. Not sure he realizes it though. Shame, really. I'd maybe give up the others for him."

"Guy must be an idiot. If you were mine, there's no way I'd share."

"That so?" Bruce raised an eyebrow as they swayed to the music, continuing with their little game.

"Oh yeah." He nodded, smile softer and eyes dark in the way that Bruce knew meant he was about to be quite serious. "I'd steal you away from all of these people. Take you away to some magical place like Candyland. I'd make endless love to you. Marry you. Have some babies. Grow old. You'd be mine. Only mine."

Bruce felt his heart constrict with a warm and pleasant tightness as they stopped moving and stood their searching each other's eyes as if for the first time. He knew his eyes held the same love and longing he could see in Tony's. "Throw in a dog and I just might accept," Bruce whispered, voice low and slightly needy, before he claimed Tony's lips.

"I could do this forever, Bruce," Tony whispered when they pulled away again.

There was such utter contentment in Tony's voice that it sent tingles along Bruce's skin. He almost felt like a teenager again… Or at least how he assumed normal teenagers felt in these situations since he hadn't been that lucky.

Ignoring that train of thought Bruce smiled, eyes still closed. "Which part? The dancing or the bantering or the kissing?"

"All of the above. And more. Just standing here. That's good. I could do that too."

Bruce opened his eyes at that and saw that there was more than just longing in Tony's eyes. It was absolute need. His breath hitched as it overwhelmed him. Tony really believed he needed him of all people. It didn't make sense. He'd told himself over and over again that it could end at any moment no matter how much he wanted to believe it wouldn't. But suddenly he did believe. He couldn't _not_ believe when Tony looked at him like that.

"I think you have a speech to give to the main guests soon," Bruce said, hating that he had to be responsible.

To his surprise, Tony's eyes lit up. "You're right. Let's go."

Tony grabbed his hand and practically dragged him up to the pavilion that was exclusive to close guests – which of course included the rest of the team, some S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, other superheroes not affiliated with S.H.I.E.L.D. and friends like Pepper and Rhodey. Bruce's cousin had even shown up, which was a bit of a surprise to him. As they went, Bruce could feel Tony practically vibrating with a nervous kind of energy. He suddenly suspected that Tony was up to something. He'd been acting strange while they were in Malibu and he'd guessed it was just a combination of stress over the building of the mansion, the planning of the party, and general SI related things. But now he wondered if it hadn't _all_ been the party.

Once all of the exclusive guests had gathered for the speech, Tony stood in the center of the room and Bruce stood beside him, because Tony insisted on it. The team was only a few feet away so he figured it wasn't worth arguing over.

"Three years ago, I was still an asshole," Tony began, media smile on his face, and the entire room erupted into laughter. Bruce gave a silent chuckle, shaking his head slightly.

"What do you mean _was_?" Coulson quipped from where he stood at the front of the crowd.

"Ah, yes, and three years ago I seem to recall you were still dead." Tony gave a wistful shake of his head. "Precious memories." The crowd, Coulson included, laughed again. "But we're all very glad to have you back, Agent. So, as I was saying, three years ago I was still somewhere between being a huge asshole and the slightly more loveable asshole that I am now. The Avengers is the reason for that. Sorry we had to have an alien invasion for me to get my act together, but let me just say it's not easy being the center of the universe so I hope you understand."

"Oh god," Bruce groaned audibly, earning his own laughs from their friends.

"Now, _darling_ , you of all people know it's true," Tony rolled with it easily. He then paused before continuing more seriously. "So, on that fateful day, I was still torn between who I used to be and who I wanted to be. I was a volatile, self-obsessed S.H.I.E.L.D. consultant and for some reason Fury thought it would be a good idea to call me in anyway. Thanks, Nick. But if I'm being honest, I still wasn't the kind of guy to lay down on a wire. Good call on that, Cap. I wasn't there to join fresh music sensation _Natasha and the Super Boys_ – copyright pending – and, frankly, if I had known in advance the kind of nightmares and hours of therapy waiting for me on this side of that wormhole, I'm not even sure I could have gone through with saving the day at all. But the moral of the story is if you stick with it, kids and learn to play well with others, and throw in a not-dead-agent to avenge, you can end up with some pretty awesome rewards. Because friends are magic, yada, yada. And like every good Disney movie, you can maybe even find love."

Clint gave a loud "awwww" as did Bruce's cousin and Bruce ducked his head. He smiled just the same. Like Tony, three years ago he wouldn't have expected any of this. He could never have imagined that his choosing to borrow a security guard's moped to travel to Stark Tower would result in his falling in love with Stark himself.

"But now I'm going to let you all in on a little secret," Tony continued. "I would have probably blown this Popsicle stand a long time ago if not for having found the love of my life."

Bruce's heart nearly stopped and he looked at Tony with wide eyes. "Tony, you don't need to make this all about me," he said, hoping a nervous chuckle would diffuse his awkwardness.

"But that's the thing," Tony barreled on. "It is all about you. Rather, about us." He kept his gaze both on Bruce and also directed at the crowd in a way that only he could, Bruce mused. "Those first moments together on the Helicarrier were when my world changed. I knew you were someone I needed to keep even if I had no inkling of just how much I would need you. After the battle, you stayed and you put me back together. You invited me in to that breathtaking brain space of yours and you allowed me to help you put you back together too. Without that, without you, I would have said goodbye to all of this after the third nightmare. Or I would have drank myself to death maybe. I don't think I would have had any reason to commit to this thing. And I certainly never would have dreamed of building another mansion, some place more permanent with roots and a big yard and room to grow."

He paused. Then he took a deep breath and looked at Bruce directly, eyes intensely on him as if he was the only one in the room. Bruce couldn't take his eyes from Tony either. He wondered how he looked to the other man or anyone else as he was sure his face was red and his eyes watery.

"You once joked that my helping you meant I could go down in history as the man who tamed the Hulk. But the truth is you'll get to go down in history as the man who tamed Tony Stark." Then he gave an uncharacteristically nervous laugh and tacked on, "Oh, but I kind of promised Pepper she gets 15% credit. Hope you don't mind."

Bruce tried not to think about how none of this had to do with The Avengers as a team, but Clint's words from earlier were in his mind and now Tony was confirming them. He had guessed Tony was up to something, but derailing the speech for a declaration of love in front of a room full of people wasn't anything he'd expected. And-

Just as it dawned on him what this very well might be, Tony's talk of forever as they'd danced echoing in his ears and Tony's subtle hints over the past few months that he wanted them to be something that could work permanently replaying in his mind, there was a bark from somewhere in the room that drew his attention away. He turned with furrowed brow to see Bear bounding toward them and he spied the conspiratorial grins on Pepper's and Rhodey's faces.

"Bear?" Bruce looked quickly at Tony in confusion and then sank down on his heels to intercept their dog. "Well, aren't you a regular little party crasher," he said awkwardly, surprised he could even manage words at all with the way his thoughts were spinning. Their friends laughed, not seeming too concerned by the out of place animal.

When Bear reached him Bruce immediately noticed that his dog tag had been replaced by one of Tony's actual arc reactors, only it had been slightly re-engineered so that there was a purple plate in the middle etched with the words _Be My Forever_. His fingers brushed reverently over the letters and he was immediately overwhelmed with emotion. He picked up Bear and slowly stood, turning back to see Tony looking at him with wide-eyed hopefulness.

Then Tony took a few steps forward so to stand right in front of him and searched his face as if committing it to memory for the first time.

"I'd like you to be my forever, Bruce Banner," Tony said with so much earnestness that Bruce immediately forgave him for asking the question that followed in front of an audience. "Will you marry me?"

Bruce bit his lip and looked down at Bear for a moment before meeting Tony's eyes again. He then let a broad, genuine smile spread across his face. "Since you threw in a dog," he teased, hoping Tony wouldn't think it ruined the moment. Tony smiled that eye crinkling smile of his that told him it didn't. Then Bruce added, with what he hoped sounded like his heart put into language for Tony to hear, "Yes."

There were cheers and applause from their friends, but at that moment Bruce felt as though he and Tony were the only two people in the room as their lips touched tenderly. Tony had swept him away to Candyland and now he knew for sure that he wanted him to stay forever.

**Author's Note:**

> Song Inspiration - Be My Forever by Christina Perri and Ed Sheeran. 
> 
> This fic has actually been 90 percent written since shortly after finishing Hulk Hearts Puppies because I was listening to that song once while writing and it just felt like it fit Tony and Bruce in this verse and I had this sudden vision of Tony using Bear to propose and died a little from fluff thinking about it. I wish I had started the bridge work sooner to this arc, but it's here at last and I'm still pretty happy with the way the fluff turned out at 100 percent complete. 
> 
> If Tony's random insecurity seemed out of left field and didn't make sense, it was supposed to be Tony's emotions riding high because of the impending proposal. Also apologies to Pepper or Pepperony fans if mentions of that relationship seemed flippant. Because this is sort of my happy verse with all kinds of mcu divergence, I'm going with my preferred canon divergence that Pepper and Tony never got as serious as they did in the films. I adore Pepper, I've just never really been here for Tony and Pepper as anything more than just really great friends, comics first and then the movies did nothing to change that for me. And if I ever do a prequel to this series, that divergence will likely come up there too.
> 
> The use of the arc reactor as a means to propose was inspired by an internet piece I read, I believe last year, about a guy who used an arc reactor replica to propose. But of course I don't imagine Tony wouldn't just give Bruce any old reactor, the ~~secretly~~ sentimental sap would go over and beyond with the whole purple in the middle to be symbolic of Bruce being the proof that he has a heart. So yeah, that was the idea there. I thought it would be more fun and Tony-ish in this verse than just an engagement ring. Something they can both keep on display so to speak.


End file.
